Nuggets (13-6) at Celtics (16-4) 12/8

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
Denver Nuggets (13-6) at Boston Celtics (16-4)
Wednesday, December 8
7:00 PM ET
Game #21, Home Game #11
TV:  ESPN, CSNNE, ASE
Radio:  WEEI, KCKK
TD Garden


Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard
  vs 
Rajon Rondo  11.4 PPG, 14.1 APG,  2.3 SPG
Chauncey Billups 14.8 PPG, 5.2 APG, 1.1 SPG

Shooting Guard 
  vs 
Ray Allen  15.9 PPG,  3.1 APG, .421 3P%
Arron Afflalo 12.3 PPG, 2.5 APG,  .426 3P%

Small Forward
  vs 
Paul Pierce  19.6 PPG,  4.8 RPG,  2.7 APG 
Carmelo Anthony  23.3 PPG,  8.1 RPG,  3.4 APG

Power Forward
  vs 
Kevin Garnett    15.7 PPG,  9.6 RPG,  0.6 BPG
Shelden Williams  5.6 PPG,  6.2 RPG,  0.7 BPG 

Center
  vs 
Shaquille O'Neal  11.9 PPG,  6.6 RPG,  0.6 BPG
Nene Hilario  13.7 PPG,  6.8 RPG,  1.00 BPG 





Boston Bench Mob
Nate Robinson
Glen Davis
Semih Erden
Von Wafer
Avery Bradley
Luke Harangody
Marquis Daniels 

Injuries
Jermaine O'Neal (knee) out
Kendrick Perkins (knee)  out
Delonte West  (wrist)  out
Rajon Rondo (hamstring, feet)  probable
Nate Robinson (foot)  probable
Shaquille O'Neal (knee) probable 



Denver's Reserves
Al Harrington
J.R. Smith
Ty Lawson
Renaldo Balkman
Anthony Carter
Gary Forbes
Melvin Ely

Injuries
Kenyon Martin (knee) out
Chris Andersen (back) day to day

Team Connections
Shelden Williams played for the Celtics during the 2009‐10 season
Anthony Carter and Kevin Garnett were teammates in Minnesota during the 2004‐05 season.
Chauncey Billups and Kevin Garnett were teammates in Minnesota from
2000‐02
Chauncey Billups was drafted by the Celtics with the 3rd overall pick in the 1997 NBA Draft
Von Wafer played for the Nuggets during the 2007‐08 season
Ray Allen played for George Karl in Seattle from 1998‐2003
Nate Robinson and Renaldo Balkman were teammates in New York from 2006‐08

Key Matchups
  vs 
Paul Pierce vs Carmelo Anthony
This is another matchup between two great players. Both are tough and both do whatever their teams need. This will be a fun matchup to watch

  vs 
Rajon Rondo vs Chauncey Billups 
This will be a tough matchup for Rondo if he isn't 100%.  Billups is a cagey veteran player and has burned the Celtics in the past.  If Rondo can't go, it will be even tougher for Nate.

Honorable Mention
Kevin Garnett vs Shelden Williams
Shelden Williams has moved into the starting lineup for Denver and Celtics fans have to be happy for him as he was a fan favorite in Boston.   But, don't expect KG to take it easy on him.  When the game starts, he is fair game for KG. 

Big Baby Davis vs JR Smith
In their two meetings last season, JR Smith came up big for the Nuggets, averaging 20 points in their two meetings.   Big Baby has been playing very well and should at least match any contributions from Smith in this game.     

Game Notes
The Nuggets make their only trip to TD Garden this season.  The Celtics won't play them in Denver until February 24.   Last season, the Celtics split  the series 1‐1 with each team winning on their home court.    Ray Allen led the C’s with an average of 20.5 points per game against the Nuggets while Kevin Garnett added 17.5 points  and 7.5 rebounds per game.   Rajon Rondo almost averaged a triple‐double with 13.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 13.0 assists to go along with 3.0 steals per game vs the Nuggets.   Carmelo Anthony averaged 27.5 points and 6.5 assists per game while J.R. Smith averaged 20.0 points coming in off the bench for the Nuggets. 

The Nuggets are playing in the second of back to back games, having played in Charlotte the night before.  The Celtics come into this game rested as they last played on Sunday afternoon.   The rest should give both Shaq and Rondo a good chance of being up to playing in this one.

Both teams have been playing well.   Going into Charlotte, the Nuggets win streak matches the Celtics 7 game win streak.  So, coming into Boston they will either be on an 8 game win streak or looking to start a new streak.    Both teams are 8-2 in their last 10 games.  The Celtics are 9-1 at home while the Nuggets are 3-5 on the road. 

Keys to the Game
Defense - I may sound like a broken record, but Defense is the key to every game this season.   If they come into every game with the mindset to make defense a priority, they stand a good chance of winning every one.  When they slack off on defense, it affects every part of their game. 

Rebound -   Since much of rebounding is effort and desire, the effort put out on the boards usually indicates how much the team really wants the game.   The team that wins the battle of the boards usually comes out on top because the effort needed to out rebound the other team carries across all other areas of the game. 

Go to the Hoop- In their 7 game win streak, the Celtics have outscored their opponents by large numbers in the paint.  The Celtics must continue to take the ball to the basket and not settle for outside jumpers. 

Play 48 Minutes-   The Celtics have had a tendency to either start out slow and then play catch up or to let up once they get a lead.  That can work against some of the weaker teams but against a tough team like the Nuggets, the Celtics must come out strong and maintain that for 48 minutes. 

Move the Ball- When the Celtics move the ball and find the open man, they are very tough to beat.  They have so many weapons that they always get a good shot.  When the ball movement slows and players try to do too much, it usually ends in a loss. 

X-Factors
Home Court and Rust
The Celtics are 9-1 at home and have said that they want to protect their home court this season, something they didn't do last year.  They need to continue to make home court an advantage and make the Garden a place to be feared again.   When they have a few days off, there is always a chance for there to be some rust to begin with.  They need to shake that off and start the game off strong. 

[ducksawce]

This is always one of my favorite matchups.  These two teams are so different.  The Nuggets are always a great Western team to watch...great offense, esp with Carmelo, but can they handle heavy Celtic defensive pressure on the road?  Likely not.  Let's keep this win streak going!

[thirstyboots18]

The Nuggets are my favorite West coast team.  Should be a good game.  The Celtics better not fall asleep after the last easy outing against the Nets...(I hate blowouts because the winner often relaxes).   Go Celts!  UBUNTU!  TP, FL

[2short]

If rondo doesn't go I'd expect to see a fair amount of Daniels on billups.  Would like to have Nene on our team.

[gar]

If Marquis is on Chauncey, where does that leave Nate - Affalo and JR Smith are both 6-5. Ty Lawson is a good matchup; but I agree, Nate will have trouble against Chauncey. Would rather see Bradley play Chauncey:o

[2short]

If Marquis is on Chauncey, where does that leave Nate - Affalo and JR Smith are both 6-5. Ty Lawson is a good matchup; but I agree, Nate will have trouble against Chauncey. Would rather see Bradley play Chauncey:o

I was very impressed with the job marquis did on devin harris (previous game not last one missed it).  I was surprised actually, he can help us with bigger pg defense in the future, didn't think he had the foot speed.  Billups will be posting up or backing down, nate doesn't stand a chance.  Nate as a pg is good for full court pressure, eat up some 24 second clock, or just deny his man the ball from inbounds pass on.
I'd like to see bradley get some burn, like what i've seen BUT only if he doesn't hurt us.  If he does as well as tony allen, good defense, turnovers etc than I say give him some time.  It'll help us until delonte is back.  Want Rondo rested & healthy!

[Fafnir]

The Nuggets winning streak snuck up on me, should be a good game.

[ACF]

TP. Go Celtics!

[Bankshot]

KG against Meadowlark's boy, Shelden.  This should be fun.

[j804]

The Nuggets winning streak snuck up on me, should be a good game.

Yeah same here just heard this on the broadcast for Bobcats/Nuggets game right now, should be a good one for sure. Hopefully Shaq or Baby suit up otherwise Nene is going to be a load to handle.

[cornbreadsmart]

So isRondo still probable for the Denver game ? I can't really get a feel from it from what doc said. 

[u2larkin04]

both teams have a 7 game winning streak, karl is one win away from 1000 career wins as a coach... this is gonna be a good one!

[FLCeltsFan]

So isRondo still probable for the Denver game ? I can't really get a feel from it from what doc said. 

From what I'm reading, he is questionable as of now and they may shut him down for several games if the hamstring keeps acting up. 

[raynman]

The Nuggets winning streak snuck up on me, should be a good game.

Too bad the nuggets lost tonight.. still, i don't want george karl to get his 1000th win on us..

[thirstyboots18]

Yeah, it was a three point shoot out!  Our perimeter defense better be ready tonight.  We will miss Rondo greatly if he can't play.   Time for a little smother defense with Bradley?  I hope he is ready for the big time...C. Billips doesn't look like he has lost a step. (I would still love to see him back in green.)